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Nonreciprocal Superradiant Phase Transitions and Multicriticality in a Cavity QED System
Gui-Lei Zhu1,2, Chang-Sheng Hu3, Hui Wang2
1Department of Physics, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China.
Abstract:
We demonstrate the emergence of nonreciprocal superradiant phase transitions and novel multicriticality in a cavity quantum electrodynamics system, where a two-level atom interacts with two counterpropagating modes of a whispering-gallery-mode microcavity. The cavity rotates at a certain angular velocity and is directionally squeezed by a unidirectional parametric pumping χ^{(2)} nonlinearity. The combination of cavity rotation and directional squeezing leads to nonreciprocal first- and second-order superradiant phase transitions. These transitions do not require ultrastrong atom-field couplings and can be easily controlled by the external pump field. Through a full quantum description of the system Hamiltonian, we identify two types of multicritical points in the phase diagram, both of which exhibit controllable nonreciprocity. These results open a new door for all-optical manipulation of superradiant transitions and multicritical behaviors in light-matter systems, with potential applications in engineering various integrated nonreciprocal quantum devices.
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